Yemeni Gov't Asks President To Expel UAE From Arab Coalition For Supporting Separatists

Yemeni Gov't Asks President to Expel UAE From Arab Coalition for Supporting Separatists

The internationally recognized Yemeni government sent a letter to the country's president requesting that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) be expelled from the Arab coalition in Yemen for allegedly supporting the uprising of separatists in the southern part of the country, the transport minister told Sputnik on Wednesday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 21st August, 2019) The internationally recognized Yemeni government sent a letter to the country's president requesting that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) be expelled from the Arab coalition in Yemen for allegedly supporting the uprising of separatists in the southern part of the country, the transport minister told Sputnik on Wednesday.

Earlier in August, the Yemeni separatist Southern Transitional Council (STC) captured the Maashiq presidential palace in Aden. The clashes left at least 40 people dead and 260 more injured. The Yemeni Interior Ministry said that 400 UAE military vehicles were used by separatists during the fighting. The UAE, in its turn, reportedly rejected Yemen's allegations in an address to the United Nations on Tuesday.

"The government in its statement yesterday recognized the UAE as responsible for everything that happens, and sent a letter to Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi [with a request that] the UAE be removed from participation in the affairs of the Arab Coalition in Yemen," Yemeni Transport Minister Saleh al-Jubani told Sputnik.

According to al-Jubani, the government is expected to announce a general mobilization to fight the separatists in the south, following Tuesday's seizure of a military base in the Abyan governorate by STC forces.

"Returning to the government statement, we can only resist the rebellion with all our forces and announce the general mobilization of the Yemeni people and their participation in this national battle to save Yemen, its unity and stability," the minister said.

Al-Jubani also told Sputnik that Yemen's presidency was conducting a "military-political battle on all fronts" to preserve the country and overcome the crisis in Aden and coup in Sanaa.

The Saudi-led coalition of mostly Arab countries, of which the UAE is a part, has been carrying out military operations in Yemen since spring 2015.

The Southern Transitional Council was created in 2017 around former Aden Governor Aidarus Zoubaidi, who had been fired by Hadi for his sympathies toward southern secessionists.